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Thursday, May 8, 2014

A plethora of O’s

Once I was a crack typist. Sixty or seventy words per
minute. I almost typed WPM, and while there is a generation who would recognize
that, there are two that don’t. Clickity click, ding, carriage return, clickity…..
And so on. I was not so good at numbers up there above the QWERTY line; I
suppose the looking dragged me down to sixty WPM.

Things have changed, and it’s not old age. Even though I've
worn the register mark from the keyboard F, I still clicked along as necessary,
and having the ten key number pad was wonderful. My right hand could dart over
for necessary numbers and come right back to the register mark on J. Then I had
that stroke, in 2010.

I’m not complaining about the outcome; some remarkable medicine
let me carry on with life. I am left to deal with new shortcomings, however.
The physical therapist who discharged me wrote “Unstable” on my chart, which
really sums it up. And I’m unstable because my right side drags a bit.

Some days all is well and I get on like a reasonably stable
old lady. Some days I sigh and reach for the cane. It’s a wonderful rudder.
It’s also a hand rail at all those steps that have none. There are far too many
rail-less stairs in my life. Some days my right foot comes along just fine,
some days it drags a little, and some days I actually have to tell it “heel,
toe, heel, toe” to encourage it along. But, I get where I have to and do what I have
to do.

Look at that right toe of my beloved red deck sneakers. I haven’t worn them through, yet!

The real problem is the O’s. My right hand drags all the
time. It adds gratuitous O’s to all my work. The red squiggle and I are firm
acquaintances. Sometimes I think, people should just see this; they would laugh
until the tears run. It looks like the room of monkeys attempting to recreate
Shakespeare.

But, I clean it up before I hit publish. No stability, but I
still have my pride.

33 comments:

Isn't that one magic of the internet, though, Joanne? Our words are what is seen, not how they got there. And we are judged by our thoughts, not by the package that contains them.(By the way, I have always been eternally grateful for that typing course in high school since I can still type as fast as I think. I pity those hunt and peckers - the vast majority - who never learned the keyboard.)

Hari OmOh how weird, I was just contemplating this yesterday evening. I too was considered a crack typist. But I was wondering that, despite maintaining speed, my accuracy has become rather dismal. I came to the conclusion that the ease of the 'delete' key encouraged laziness...I can type fast, erase, then retype in a blink. Trouble is my eye is no longer as accurate at speed reading and therefore editing is sometimes a bit dodgy and mistakes still ease their way through... mostly it's understood though.

Can you patch that toe? I recall mother getting rubber patches for our plimsoles at school. One pair a year was all we were permitted so patching was a must! YAM xx

You know, Joanne, I look up to you, admire you for all you do - for yourself as well as those around you. Red squiggles be damned. If I can wear animal print shoes at my age, you can produce as many red squiggles as you need! One of Stephen Pastis' early Pearls Before Swine comics had Pig asking Rat how to emphasize how he felt about Pigita. Rat replied, "well, italicize it!" Pig wrote, "Dear-o Pigita-o, I-o love-o you-o." (and did you know that your pig on the steps looks as tho he's blowing bubbles next to the pansies?)

One of the many reasons I love computers, I can type faster. I have a bit of the same thing with my leg having grown longer due to scoliosis and I always appreciate railings. I guess we just adjust and move on because that is who we are--strong women.

Well, whatever the stroke did, it sure didn't affect your sharpness, your wittiness nor your sense of humor. I've said this before I knew you'd had a stroke and I'll say it again, only louder... you are one of my heroes!

Snap. I drag a leg myself. Sometimes more, sometimes less. Not graceful, but it covers the ground. My hands shake too - and my best beloved once told me as he watched me with the flour sifter 'other people have to do things to sift flour - you just need to stand there'.

Lack of red squiggles can be bad, too.Word insists on knowing what word is being typed, with no sense of context. So it struggles to put in a real word, and often succeeds, leaving all the proof reading. Sigh. I guess that's why I have nothing but time.

Oh, Joanne - your dragging heel makes not a jot of difference to the joy you bring us fellow bloggers, but I am glad you clean up the text before publishing. I love your belligerent attitude - much better than some blogtopian schmaltz.

One of the joys of typing directly into Wordpress....no idiot non savant double guessing what I am writing.My husband's hands are pretty well paralysed (except where it comes to handling birds and butterflies) but he persists at the keyboard...only short stuff though as he gets tired very quickly....and tidies it up before sending.Problems are for beating.

I love the pattern on the bottom of your sneakers. I have trouble with the right hand shift key and no stroke to blame it on. I don't know why but 9 times out of 10 when I reach for the shift key, it doesn't work or at least I don't strike it hard enough to make it work. I have to look directly at it in order for it to make a capital letter. which is why I often just omit capitals altogether.

I use a cane on occasion -- usually when I am going to be doing a lot of walking. I laugh to think I was such an athletic person at one time and then the knees went -- no operation for me -- keeping what I have -- not a fan of the operating table. -- I do fine just as I am. -- barbara

You know by reading your posts and seeing all you do, I would not have guessed you had a stroke except for you mentioning it at times on your blog. It sounds like you have come a long way and have adapted the best you can with what you are working with right now with your body. It is good too that technology helps make things easier for people affected by strokes and other disabilities with such things as Dragon Speak to save people from having to type if they are not able to or not able to do it quickly.

You are one tough broad and I have great admiration for you and all that you have accomplished and will accomplish. Never mind the red squiggles....I haven't had a stroke and can match you squiggle for squiggle any day.

One of the benefits of commenting (a lot) - and probably more so for blogging - is keeping up with the typing skills. My job is mostly numbers, so I don't get a lot of practice there. I think you put a lot of us who haven't had a stroke to shame, Joanne.

Dear Joanne, that is tough, getting a stroke. I didn't know about it - which tells a lot: you are strong, a not complaining person, with a lot of willpower and discipline. What a luck that nowadays the text shows you where you have missed a letter before publishing it. All the best for you!

I say let them eat O's and squiggles, love the bottom of your shoes, I was looking for some shoes the other day and not a single one has any arch support, not sure where one gets some good shoes nowadays.

I'm sorry to read about your stroke, I think you've mentioned it before. Can you get some sort of caps put onto the right toes of your shoes while they are still new? (like tap shoes)Hooray for walking sticks and the stability they provide. My mum had one and used it at home but refused to take it out with her in case people thought she was old. For heavens sake! She was old. I think you do very well with your typing still, and extra well with your editing. I really enjoy reading your posts.

My writing is pretty bad and I can't play the stroke card as an excuse. I make a lot more "typing" errors now. When The Hurricane went to prep school, her typing or keyboarding or whatever had to be evaluated. While the other kids picked around finding the words (because they spent all their time playing video games), she typed 70 WPM without an error. The teacher said, You can go. I used to take her to the newspaper and let her type up inconsequential stuff. Oh, how I miss those days. Sorry for bragging about my baby. I do it too much, but I don't have a lot to feel good about right now.